本集內容

5,000-year-old human bone found in the River Thames 英泰晤士河發現五千年前人類骨骼

學習要點

有關 “rivers（河流）” 的詞匯

邊看邊答

What is Simon Hunt going to do with the bone?

文字稿

On a fine September day last year, Simon Hunt took his boat from Team Keane Rowing Club down to the River Thames at Brentford, just as he normally does most days. But on that day, he spotted something lurking in the shallows.

去年九月的一個晴朗的日子，西蒙·亨特就像往常大多數日子一樣，從倫敦泰晤士河布倫特福德的基恩隊劃船俱樂部劃船出發。但在那一天，他發現了某樣東西潛藏在淺灘上。

Simon Hunt, Team Keane Rowing Club
At first, I thought maybe it's an animal bone and it just would be quite funny just to sort of say to everyone on the water 'look, I found a bone'. But it was obviously from looking at it, you see the hip, the hip joint. And I thought, no, this is human bone. So, therefore, best to phone the police and report it.

西蒙·亨特       基恩隊劃船俱樂部
“一開始，我以為這可能是動物的骨頭，想著我能跟河上周圍的人打趣說：‘瞧！我找到了一根骨頭！’ 但很顯然，一番觀察后，能看到髖關節。我才發覺：不，這是人的骨骼。所以，最好打電話報警。”

To determine if the river where Simon rows was now, in fact, a crime scene – having found a human femur there -– they took it for carbon dating.

由于發現了一截人類股骨，所以為確定西蒙劃船所在的河段是否實為犯罪現場，警方把骨頭拿去做了碳年代測定。

Simon Hunt, Team Keane Rowing Club
And I got a phone call from the detective about a week ago. And she phoned me up and said: 'We've got the date, what do you think?' And, so, my only, it shows my education now – my frame of reference for things that are old – medieval maybe? Then she goes 'keep going'. So, then she tells me that between three, I think it's like – 3,500. And I was thinking that then 3,000 [years old]? And then of course, at the end, she adds BC.

西蒙·亨特       基恩隊劃船俱樂部
“大約一周前，我接到警探的電話。她打給我說：‘我們已經確定了骨骼的年代，你覺得它有多久遠？’ 我的回答暴露了我的教育水平，因為說到舊事物，我只有一個參照時期，我說：‘也許是中世紀？’ 她說：‘要更久遠。’ 然后，她告訴我，我記得好像是3500。當時我想：3000年前的骨骼？結果，最后她補充是公元前3500年左右。”

The bone is 5,300 years old – one of the most ancient objects ever found in the Thames.

這塊骨骼有5300年的歷史，是在泰晤士河發現的最古老的文物之一。

Simon Hunt, Team Keane Rowing Club
It predates the pyramids, predates Stonehenge. What was going on? What was this place like? Who was this person?

西蒙·亨特       基恩隊劃船俱樂部
“它比金字塔更古老，比巨石陣更古老。當時發生了什么？當時這個地方是什么樣的？這個人是誰？”

Well, like today, there's almost a causeway across this part of the Thames at low tide.

當時，這里就如同今日，退潮時，泰晤士河的這個部分依稀可見一條堤道。

But 5,000 years ago, the river was much wider and shallower. Mudflats extending beyond into woodland. The landscape [was] sparsely populated by Neolithic man, semi-nomadic herder hunter-gatherers, who used flint tools and crude pottery vessels.

但5000年前，這條河要寬得多，也淺得多。泥灘蔓延到了林地間。這里人煙稀少，居住著新石器時代的半游牧的、靠狩獵和采集為生的人，他們使用燧石工具和粗糙的陶器。

An artist's impression of ?tzi, the Iceman found in Italy, gives us an idea of what they might have looked like.

這是發現于意大利的奧茲冰人的模擬畫像，讓我們得以了解這些人可能的長相。

Simon Hunt, Team Keane Rowing Club
I'm going to give it to the Museum of London. That's my plan. I have no place for it in my house. The initial thing was: 'Oh, my word, it's a really old bone.' And then obviously the kind of: 'OK, be respectful'. Because this was actually a human being. This was a person. They had a life. They were doing stuff around here and so that's why I hope to say to give it to the museum so that they can put it on display and hopefully people will, as I have done, connect with the past.

西蒙·亨特       基恩隊劃船俱樂部
“我要把它交給倫敦博物館。這就是我的計劃。我家不適合藏著它。我最初的想法是：天吶，這是一截非常古老的骨骼。然后我琢磨了一下：好吧，要表現出尊重。因為這其實是人類，曾經是一個人，曾有自己的生活，并在這一帶活動。所以這就是為什么我希望把它交給博物館，這樣就可以把它展出，希望人們會像我一樣，通過它與歷史相連。”

Wendy Hurrell, BBC correspondent
How's it feels to you to have been part of this extraordinary adventure?

溫迪·赫雷爾       BBC通訊員
“作為這個不同尋常的奇遇的一部分，你有何感想？”

Simon Hunt, Team Keane Rowing Club
From the initial 'oh, it's quite funny I found a bone in the river' to 'actually then there it could be potentially criminal', to then finding out it's actually archaeologically significant. So, it has been an amazing adventure.

西蒙·亨特       基恩隊劃船俱樂部
“從一開始的 ‘哦，真有意思，我在河里發現了一根骨頭’ 到 ‘這有可能是犯罪現場’，再到后來發現它其實具有考古意義。所以，這確實是一次神奇的經歷。”

詞匯

lurking 潛藏著

shallows 淺灘，淺水處

causeway 堤道

low tide 低潮，退潮

mudflats 泥灘

問題答案

He is going to give it to the Museum of London.